Off We Go!

*This wedding and blog created/designed by Jill Areheart*

Many of our brides and grooms have stressful jobs and busy lives, but Betsy and Jerad kind of win. They are both fighter pilots in the US Air Force and decided to plan their wedding in just three – yes three – months.

During that short time, they had training exercises across the country and Jerad even got deployed overseas. We would have been thrilled to work with them no matter what, but their great attitudes and fun personalities made it an especially wonderful experience.

Vendors:

Ceremony venue: Trenholm Road United Methodist Church

Reception venue: 300 Senate

Catering: Dupre Catering and Events

Photography: Zachary B. Hoffman Photography

Floral Design:  Something Special Florist

Music: Don Russo

Rentals: Palmetto Party Rental

Cake: Parties to Go

Design/Set: By Invitation Only….Event Planning & Design

Here is the room from a couple of different angles. They really wanted bright, happy colors. Royal blue and kelly green are the ones that really spoke to Betsy, with some bright yellow mixed in. Luckily their venue – 300 Senate – made a great backdrop for that kind of color. We mixed in some lighter shades to keep everything from being overwhelming, and it turned out gorgeous!

I told them we would add in the bright colored hanging lanterns with the white until it “started getting obnoxious.” I think we ended up with just the right amount to pull the room together.

I love that Grant with Something Special Florist did three distinct types of centerpieces. Mixed with the different colored runners, each table had slightly different look.   

For the huge outside deck, we pulled in more of the yellow, and used our simple black lanterns on the tall cocktail tables.

 LOVED the jelly bean bar. Betsy and her mom carefully selected the yummiest flavors that fit the color scheme: lemon drop, margarita, and blueberry. Each guest could fill a little box with their favorites.

 

 

The following photos are all courtesy of Zachary B. Hoffman Photography

 

Cake by Parties to Go.

They really wanted a picture with the Gervais Street bridge in the background, so they took a few minutes to trek with Zach Hoffman though the woods so he could get this perfect shot.

She thinks my {his} tractor is sexy!

This wedding is beyond words in many ways!!!  Elizabeth and Andrew came to us asking for help to bring their wedding to life and together in a very special location ~ an arboretum in Boykin, South Carolina.  This space was gorgeous and holds a special place in their hearts so we began working on the design and layout of the weekend.

We worked closely with, of course, the couple, but also Capital City Catering, Palmetto Party Rental and American Floral to get all aspects ‘in-line’ and unique to this couple. 

The love and friendship that we got to be a part of during this wedding was so moving~ all the details in the wedding spoke directly of the couples relationship and future which made it so very meaningful and unique~

Due to all the images, I will talk about them as you go through the amazing images from Sara Parker and the details!!

We have amazing vendor love here:

Photography ~ Sara Parker

Catering ~ Capital City Catering

Cake ~ Parties to Go

Floral design ~ American Floral

Rentals ~ Palmetto Party Rental

So…as you can see from the title (that Darren came up with) she really did love his tractor   I just love this sign detail!

Andrew created their ‘directional sign’ from a reclaimed door out of a house on the property.

Now this is soooo great….the guys wore bow ties with cotton bowls on and then each wore a bout. of cotton and pheasant feathers!!

Love the bright colors ~ bouquest were wrapped with spanish moss….great touch!

This cute little flower girl basket custom with the ‘A+E’

Hand-made monograms hung on the entry columns to great guests.

Look at this gazebo!!  Andrew actually built this to marry his wife in….breath taking~ Americanl Floral did the perfect additions to add their colors and texture!

The fresh squeezed lemonade station by Capital City Catering, complete with mason jars!

Inside of the tent

So great….quail and cat-fish station.

Soooo beautiful was this collard and black-eyed pea station!!!  LOVE the bricks and mason jars!!

A great look at the smores station…

Smores station in action!!

Now this is so lovely….from the same house they used more reclaimed wood to make this one of a kind bar!!

Love this ‘hay bale coffee table’

Oh so yummy cake….

One of my favorite cake toppers, matches the hanging monograms!

We took a traditional silver candelabra and had them turn it in to this gorgeous creation!

Our hanging mason jars with candles

The couple had a silver signature tray for their guestbook!

Even more unique and fun….the couples favorite pickles as favors!

Another great image in the wheat field

Their send was wodnerful….and yes, on the tractor!

A piece of the Islands in the South

(*This blog and wedding designed by Lacy Geary, planner/design at B.I.O.)

After meeting Lydia and Vince I could see what a fun-loving couple they were.  Coming back to the South from Hawaii, they wanted to bring some of the tropical feeling with them while still including some southern charm.  They picked the Seibel’s House as the location for their reception, a true southern gem in itself.

 The color palette for this May wedding was bright pinks, oranges and greens.  Creating an atmosphere that showcased their unique style was essential to the couple.  From the beautiful flowers, to the multi-colored cake display with Hawaiian themes to each one, a young and fun feeling was brought to the event. Lydia and Vince wanted to make sure family and friends enjoyed the evening with dancing and games on the lawn.

 To close out the night the couple literally rode off into the night on a pair of red bicycles that truly showed off their unique style and personalities.

 Vendor Love:

Ceremony Location –     St. Pauls Lutheran Church

Reception Location –      Seibel’s House

Caterer –                             Capital City Catering

Cake –                                  Slice of the South (Tamra Smith)

DJ -                                        Big Time Entertainment

Photographer –                Events Photographic (Andrew Goetz)

Photo Booth –                   It’s A Snap (Tony Sharpe)

Bright and Beautiful

*This blog created by Jill Areheart, planner/design with B.I.O.* 

From the moment I met Tori and her parents they made me feel like part of the family. And when I met her fiancé Jordan, he literally welcomed me with open arms too.  That’s just the kind of people they are, so it was no surprise their day reflected that strong sense of hospitality, friendship and family.

 This was one of the prettiest back-yard weddings I’ve been part of, but then it was one of the prettiest back yards I’ve seen! Tori’s mom is an incredible gardener and she and Tori’s dad spent hours and hours making sure the setting would be perfect!

Vendors:

Venue: Private Home, Norway, SC

Catering: Capital City Catering

Photography: Sutherland Hill Farms Photography

Floral Design:  The Ivy Porch, Steve Lovelace

DJ: Sound Quest DJs

Tents/Rentals: AllStar Tents and Events

Design/Set: By Invitation Only….Event Planning & Design

Carriage: Carolina Carriages

Cake: Parkland Cakes

Entrance to the back yard. Guests walked from the nearby church and had cocktail hour in front of the house; then, once the bride and groom arrived, they entered the backyard for the full reception!

This yard had so many elements to work with. We put the vegetable sauté station in front of this fabulous birdhouse.

Check out these centerpieces! Every table had a silver tea set and tray filled with gorgeous blooms. Steve from The Ivy Porch did an amazing job on all the flowers.

(Photo courtesy of Sutherland Hill Farms)

One of my favorite elements was our chandelier over the cake. It’s always a challenge to decide how to make everything work with a floorplan that makes sense! We really wanted the cake in this corner, so then we had to figure out how to rig the chandelier. I was so happy with how it turned out.

Another wonderful feature of the yard was the koi pond. We put our ottomans out for seating and lanterns along the rim. It looked spectacular as the sun set.

One of Tori’s big challenges when she first came to us was trying to find a great color for the bridesmaids’ dresses that would go with the orange she knew she wanted. We played around with a bunch of swatches and she loved the idea of using silver/grey. Look how great it looks! It helped that she also picked stunning dresses!!

I love this picture captured by Sutherland Hill Farms:

Tori and her dad had a carriage take them to the church a couple of blocks away.

(photo courtesy of Sutherland Hill Photography)

Capital City Catering did a wonderful job as always of customizing the menu for their couple. The menu included smoked salmon that was caught by Tori’s parents in Alaska and Capital City displayed with all the accompaniments and “Orange Tiger Mousse” complete with a purple paw piped on top.

(photo courtesy of Sutherland Hill Farms Photography)

The Clemson Tiger showed up at the reception and even took the couple for a ride in a neighbor’s golf cart.

The wonderful couple with their favorite wedding planner and caterer

From left: Jill Areheart, By Invitation Only…Event Planning & Design, Victoria, Jordan, and Lee Anne with Capital City Catering.

I love you like biscuits and gravy!

(This blog created by planner/designer Jill Areheart)

Sarah and Travis were a fun, laid-back couple, who put a lot of emphasis on making sure their guests had a wonderful time. And they certainly did! From gourmet food and an international wine bar, to late-night carriage rides and a fun photobooth, there was something for everyone to enjoy.

Professional photos are thanks to Michael Koska Photography. The unmarked ones are candids we took while setting up.

Vendors LOVE:

Ceremony and Reception Venue: The SC Lace House and Garden

Catering: Food for Thought

Lighting: Ambient Media

Photography: Michael Koska Photography

Floral Design:  Balloons, Arches and Flowers

DJ: Partytime DJs  (TJ McKay)

Tents/Rentals: Palmetto Party Rental

Design/Set: By Invitation Only….Event Planning & Design

As the setting for it all, they picked a beautiful southern venue, the SC Lace House, and let us help them bring their own unique style to it.

For the seated dinner, we set a mix of round and rectangular tables in the mall area in front of the House. We wanted to bring in the navy of the bridesmaid dresses, but keep the overall look light, so we used navy runners with lavender and apple green accents on white.

The governor even popped over to look at everything while we were setting up

LOVE these centerpieces for the round tables. Sarah saw a picture of it, we found the right vases and Savanda with Balloon Arches and Flowers made it gorgeous.

We created menus using a graphic of the lampposts on the Lace House grounds. And yes…we bought aLOTof green apples from Sam’s Club that week.

The arbor in full bloom made a gorgeous backdrop for the ceremony:

First dance under the clear-top tent on the terrace.

Since the ceremony, cocktail hour, dinner and dancing were all in different locations on the grounds and in the house, Sarah had these fabulous signs made to help direct guests.

Instead of a big cake, they had a small one for cutting, plus individual pies and an ice cream sundae bar. YUM!

The “wines of the world” bar was a big hit!

And one final shot in front of the gorgeous fountain at the Lace House.

WNOK Bridal Show Recap~

Oh my gosh what an amazing day!!!  We had the best time designing this booth and getting it all set up…you know us, give us a challenge and we will find a way.

We met so many lovely brides ~ talked about some great weddings coming up and enjoyed seeing fellow vendors!  Here are few images from the show.

Special thanks to Palmetto Party Rental and  Something Special Florist

 

 

 

A little ‘KISS’ goes a long way~

Oh my gosh ~ well you all know how connected we get to our couples after working together during the planning process, but when you start out working on a wedding of a dear friend ~ man can you just get carried away (sort of)!

BIO planner, Jill Areheart came to me stating that a very dear friend of hers was getting married and she wanted us to work together on helping Natasha and Andrew bring their dream to life!!  I was so honored that Jill asked me to work with her on this and the excitement we all got when we met even the first time blew us away!

Natasha and Andrew, along with their families had really beautiful, grand ideas~ when we joined forces, it truly took on a life of its own and I know I look at these images once a week!

This wedding was so much fun ~ one funny moment I have to touch on is that father of the bride is a KISS fan and made sure that we had a visit from a ‘KISS’ member to entertain us…it was so awesome!

Who ever said that an ’all white wedding’ could not pack some ‘WOW’ needs to take a look here and see its elegance and beauty!

Photography ~ All Dressed Up Photography

Venue ~ Thornblade Country Club

Look at this show stopping aisle and alter!

Makes me cry each time I look at it….

The floral design was so beautiful throughout the club~ carrying the look of elegance everywhere you went.

We transformed the library with drape and crystals to a fun martini bar.

Over all shot of the ballroom~ beautiful.

Fun dancing shoes!

Love the fun send off we did ~

WNOK Bridal Expo January 8, 2012

Hello all future brides and grooms – it is that time of year ….so mark your calendars!!

This bridal show is crazy big and crazy fun- you will see almost every kind of vendor that you may be looking for, but of course we would love for you to come by and see us!!!

We will have our booth set up with all sorts of ideas; come chat about how we can help the make your wedding everything you want it to be and the process less stressful as well as signing up for our fabulous giveaway.

Please come out and meet us:

 Sunday, January 8, 2012

 Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center

1pm until 5pm

Watch us Thursday morning, December 29, 2011 on Good Day Columbia on WACH Fox for our ‘Tie the Knot Tips’ segment on how to maximize you experience at a bridal show!!

Admission is $7 (you can get a $2 discount coupon from participating vendors)

Here is the link: http://www.bridecity.com/columbia_show.php

Hope to see you there!

(this is all the girls from last year’s show